1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to bulked composite material which finds use in various applications such as disposable garments, towels, cleaning cloths, and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 2,021,352 to W. Eustis describes an elastic sheet material comprising an extensible fabric coated with rubber from a latex solution or dispersion, in the form of a grid (page 2, lines 30-32). In lines 21-57 on page 3, this patent discloses that it is desirable in some fabrics to have the rubber under an initial tension when the fabric is in its normal contracted condition, such as by stretching the composite fabric and loading the textile fibers with a filler to prevent contraction of the fabric and retain the rubber coating under tension. Alternatively, the stretched fabric may be coated on the side opposite to the originally applied rubber coating, to maintain such coating under tension. The foregoing refers to the broad teaching in the patent "to have the rubber under an initial tension when the fabric is in its normal and unstretched or contracted condition" (page 3, lines 21-24).
U.S. Pat. No. 2,434,111 to P. G. Hawley, Jr., et al discloses manufacturing elastic fabric, by adhesively combining elastic material with an extensible textile fabric. Elongation of the textile fabric in the finished product is uniformly increased throughout in one direction by gathering the fabric's opposite edges and stretching them in a transverse direction before combining with the elastic material. Elastic material may be applied as a coating of rubber on the fabric with subsequent drying and/or vulcanizing of the solids to form an adhered elastic layer, or it may be calendered on the fabric.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,597,299 to G. D. Thomas, et al discloses a disposable wash cloth comprising a scrim with thermoplastic adhesive-carrying creped threads preferably of heat-shrinkable material, bonded between and to creped cellulose wadding layers.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,316,136 discloses a composite fabric comprising an elastic layer and an overlying woven fabric. An adhesive may be applied in a pattern to the elastic material which then is stretched and the overlying fabric contacted therewith in pressure engagement, to adhere the two layers. When the adhesive is dry, tension on the elastic material is released, causing the overlying non-elastic fabric to gather in the areas outlined by the adhesive.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,957,512 discloses an elastic composite sheet material comprising a reticulated, fibrous web of an elastomeric material formed by extruding a liquid dispersion of the elastomeric material into a high velocity gas stream to produce a plurality of discontinuous fibers which are dried, set, collected and bonded at crossover points. A relaxed sheet material is pattern bonded to a stretched web of the elastomeric material, to form a corrugated composite body.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,337,771 discloses a disposable diaper with reticulated elastic ribbons disposed at the central side margins to gather the diaper edges.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,150,800 to V. H. Clausen, et al; 4,259,220 to W. L. Bunnelle, et al; and 4,503,108 to V. H. Clausen, et al disclose various hot-melt adhesives for reinforcement of composite webs wherein the adhesive is utilized in elastic bands or coatings for reinforcing filaments.